Twice 5 Miles: Songwriting Delights with singer-songwriter Alice Howe

In this lovely Twice 5 Miles interview, Alice Howe talks about all the songwriting delights she has enjoyed while establishing herself as one of America's prominent young singer-songwriters. 

When Alice Howe wants to unlock a memory or understand emotion, she steps outside. "There's something about the stillness," she says. "When I'm sitting with my guitar and looking out at a forest or the ocean, I have the space to reflect on people and places. My muse strikes." 

For Alice, her songwriting delights, which we enjoy today, include all the musical experiences she has embraced over the years. As a child, singing came naturally to Alice. Then, during her teenage years, Alice discovered songwriting, which she loved as much as singing. By the time Alice was eighteen, she knew without a doubt that her life's work, her destiny, if you will, would always include singing and songwriting. 

Alice's path to "up-and-coming" artist seems both fated and winding. She grew up in Newton, Massachusetts, just outside of Boston, in a home filled with music and art. Long outdoor walks were encouraged, and Alice would often disappear to wander through her grandmother's garden next door or journal and turn experiences into songs. 

"I can't remember not singing," she says with a laugh. Her mother always had a record to put on––Muddy Waters, Taj Mahal, and other blues giants were favorites. Alice sang with her brother and her dad, Sandy––a gifted painter turned successful architect––and sang alone to herself, improvising and composing constantly. 

In this interview, Alice reminds us that a career in the music business is indeed full of songwriting delights. Moreover, it requires more than a beautiful voice and writing chops. Alice tells us that to succeed in the music business, you must practice your musical craft daily, work the digital space with entrepreneurial zeal, drop as much self-doubt as you can, and embrace your musical career without hesitation.  When you do that, you too will create songwriting delights people will remember for years to come. 

I hope you enjoy this interview.

Songwriting Delights with singer-songwriter Alice Howe

Welcome to Twice 5 Miles Radio. James Navé (www.jamesnave.com)here going solo while I explore the intersections of art, culture, and spirituality. 

This week, I dive into an engaging discourse sparked by a unique invitation from Maria Masycheva (www.mariamasycheva.com), an event organizer based in Berlin, who invited me to participate in UNISONO, a virtual symposium bringing together brilliant minds from music, dance, painting, literature, and theater. 

Maria explained that at this gathering, we'll ponder six provocative questions about the role of art and spirituality in our future. Inspired to understand the question better, I decided to turn this introspection into an episode. Join me as I attempt to answer the following questions, exploring the essence of art, spirituality, and our collective responsibility in this transformative age:

1) How can artists guide us in our evolution?

2) What must we do to elevate the value of art?

3) How can we help others to incorporate spirituality into their lives?

4) What do spiritual mind and spirituality mean, and can we survive 
without them?

5) How can we raise our awareness and creativity and spread it through 
our art?

6) How does art help us endure and transform the unbearable into bearable?

Art From the Unbearable to the Bearable with poet and manuscript coach James Navé

My first performance of A Child's Christmas was in Greensboro, NC 1987. I performed the story in a parking lot while my friend and I had 30 minutes to spare before our movie, "Fried Green Tomatoes," was due to start. Given that the poem runs for 22 minutes, the timing was perfect for an impromptu rendition in the car. That experience marked the beginning of a cherished tradition, as I've recited it every Christmas season since. 

Now, years on, the poem still reveals new layers and nuances with each performance. Enjoy this delightful story about a boy growing up in Swansea, Wales, during the 1920s. It will spark memories, surprising imagery, and pleasant recollections of holidays you've enjoyed. 

If you'd like to contact me, go to my website, www.JamesNave.com, click contact and send me an email. I'd love to hear from you.

A Child's Christmas In Wales by Dylan Thomas performed by James Navé

Q: Who Would Envy You? 
A: Bruce Springsteen 

Last month, I had coffee with my friend Gareth Higgins at Recess Coffee in Black Mountain, North Carolina. As we settled in, I mentioned I’d been exploring ChatGPT. Gareth smiled and said, “Let me show you something ChatGPT can do that’ll surprise you.”

Then he leaned into his phone and dictated: List 10 notable writers or poets who would be envious of James Navé and explain why.

If you’ve ever used ChatGPT, you know what happened next—within seconds, it generated the list along with a paragraph for each one. 

While a few responses were predictable, the overall experience was oddly fascinating. It got me thinking about the lens of self-worth, creative admiration, and the power of imaginative comparison.

Yesterday, I tried Gareth’s idea out as a prompt during our Thursday Imaginative Storm Zoom workshops. List 5 to 10 people you admire. Then, write for 10 minutes about why they would envy you. Give it a spin. 

I chose Bruce Springsteen. Here’s what I wrote.

Bruce Springsteen, you envy me because I can be invisible whenever and wherever I want, wherever I go, walking through the promised land across the Rainbow Bridge. 

Bruce, I like the way you look straight out. You envy me because I can see the edges. I dwell in the fall from grace as much as the rise from grace. I'm not troubled with old sheep wandering in dry pastures. 

I have a voice that calls my mama from the grave. No, I'm no karmic child, nor am I a fleeting-moments Buddhist. I am oil and dusty windows. 

Bruce, you envy me because unlike you, I'm from the rugged south, down in the heartland where rocks have accents and children grow up to sing in Nashville. 

Bruce, you are from New Jersey—Land of steel, forest, factories, and “made-men” on corners in Jersey City. I am a creature of things that crawl in old gold heat. I know the runners that pull the cargo up the inland waterway and fly twin-engine planes out of Cuba, or they used to. 

Bruce, I know you know people, too. Do I envy you? Sure, I envy you. I've heard you weep over your piano. You envy me because nobody expects me to weep over my piano. Those who know me expect me to rise up like magic wind. 

Bruce, you envy me because I can talk to age, and time, and the coming years. I belong to the invisible Bruce. I can call up sometime, anytime I want. You can call me sometime, too. 

Let's meet in Virginia, south on I-95 just below Washington, DC. How about it, Bruce?

Bruce Springsteen Envies Me by James Navé

Bedtime flies
When you’re having fun
Like a fly on the wall
Flying under the gun

Bedtime flies
When you’re on your own
Or with someone you love
Or with someone you don’t

Bedtime flies
Away

Bedtime flies
Like a turn of the screw
‘cause you can’t make it last
No matter what you do

Bedtime flies
Time runs away
And there’s so much to do
Maybe not today

Hush sweet baby
Come to my arms
We’re gonna scream 
Like a fire alarm

Hush sweet baby
Not much to say
We’re gonna make it 
All go away

Bedtime Flies Theme

MIND THE GAP with HatchAVL founder George Glackin 

Twice 5 Miles Radio welcomes entrepreneur, engineer, and small plane pilot Geroge Glackin to microphone. Hatch is a verb which means to bring forth or produce. No wonder when George launched his Asheville based non-profit foundation dedicated to uniquely supporting high-growth starts ups, he named it Hatch AVL Foundation (AVL is the airport code for Asheville).  In this lively interview, George digs into the basics of what it takes to get your business off the ground. I was most especially intrigued when George talked about his ideas around managing and minding the inevitable gaps which emerge out of any business endeavor.  George offered a simple solution, “use your mind and think it through,” he said.  George is one of the reasons the Asheville start-up community is thriving. We’re lucky to have him in town and on-air.

Mind the Gap with Geroge Glackin

ENGAGE YOUR LOVE with soulmate coaches Orna and Matthew Walters. James Navé(www.jamesnave.com) welcomes Orna and Matthew Walters (www.creatingloveonpurpose.com) to the Twice 5 Miles Radio Microphone. I met Orna and Matthew at a 4th of July picnic in Arroyo Seco, NM. The moment I learned they were soulmate coaches who taught people how to create love on purpose, I couldn't help but ask, "why is falling in love so important?" Orna said,"love is important because we're made to love." Orna's answer sparked an hour-long conversation. I learned things like you have a love-imprint system that runs through your subconscious that determines what love looks like to you. I didn't want the hour to end, so I solved the problem by inviting them to join me Twice 5 Miles Radio. They happily agreed. Learn all about love. Listen and enjoy.

Engage Your Love with Orna and Matthew Walters

Before you start, please note that during the second half of my conversation with Susan, I spontaneously asked her about coaching questions and to give me a mini developmental coaching demo. I gave her permission for the demo, and simply thought to ask "on-the-spot" as I do with every question that I ask my guests. Now, here's why I invited Susan to join us. When I first heard of The Bend of Ivy Retreat Center north of Asheville in Madison County, I wondered what Bend of Ivy meant. “Could it be where ivy bends up rock walls?” I thought. I soon learned Bend of Ivy referred to a graceful bend in the Ivy River which flows west to the French Broad on its way Tennessee. The Bend of Ivy Retreat Center is where Susan Walters Minker, coach, writer, philosopher, and educator makes her home and runs her business. You might be surprised to discover that half-way through our delightful conversation, Susan engaged me in a coaching session by asking me, “what’s wanting to emerge in you and your work right now?” I was a little nervous answering on-air, but I plowed on; sure enough, I learned some things I didn’t know Tune in and learn some things perhaps you didn’t know.

Where the River Bends with developmental coach Susan Walters Minker

Twice 5 Miles Radio welcomes Paris based real estate entrepreneur, writer, and television host Adrian Leeds to Twice 5 Miles radio. Have you ever dreamed of waking up in Paris, making a coffee, and looking out from your 4th-floor window onto your slow-moving Sunday morning neighborhood?  Adrian helps people make their Paris dreams come true, even if they can only visit for a short week. I first met Adrian in 2006 when she invited me to speak at Aprés Midi, one of the many events she organizes for English speaking expats and tourists who visit and live in Paris.  It was a pleasure to sit down with Adrian and talk about a city we both love.  Enjoy the conversation.

Come Home to Paris with Adrian Leeds

Have you ever wondered what Julia Cameron was musing upon when she invented Morning Pages, Artist Dates, and Walks as the three core tools of her bestselling book The Artist's Way?  Listen to this short podcast and find out.

Julia Cameron, author of The Artist's Way, reflects on Morning Pages, Artist Dates, and Walks

Twice 5 Miles Radio welcomes poet and spoken-word artist Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer.  For well over two decades, poet, teacher, podcaster, and storyteller Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer has devoted life to the arts. Rosemerry lives and works at her home fifteen miles down-mountain from Telluride in the Colorado Rockies.  When you read Rosemerry's poetry or when you hear her perform her work, you magically feel complete. Rosemerry's excitement for language, life, and poetry will undoubtedly inspire you to think poetically and perhaps even write a poem.

The Poetics of Being with poet Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer

Provocative Conversations from Twice 5 Miles Radio is a podcast devoted to candid, often surprising exchanges with artists, thinkers, and cultural instigators who speak from the core. Each episode dives beneath the surface to explore the stories and questions that shape our lives.

I’m James Navé—poet, storyteller, educator, and longtime creative collaborator. With an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts and decades of teaching experience across the globe, I help writers and performers tap into their authentic voices through public speaking, creative writing, and the Imaginative Storm method, which I co-developed with Allegra Huston.

My most recent book, 100 Days: A Poetic Memoir After Cancer (3: A Taos Press), documents a hundred days of healing and poetic reckoning. I’m also co-author of Write What You Don’t Know and How to Read for an Audience—practical guides for anyone seeking to speak and write with more truth and power.

I’ve directed festivals, hosted literary salons, taught with Julia Cameron, and memorized over 600 poems. I still believe in the power of a well-told story, the light through stained glass, and the open road with nothing but a podcast and a windshield full of stars.

Bruce Springsteen Envies Me by James Navé

Twice Five Miles

Related tracks